Electric Bikes - Electric Bikes on Philadelphia Transit?

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Squashracquets
08-31-09, 12:46 PM
SEPTA is the Philadelphia, PA area transit authority. Their website says no "motorized" bicycles are permitted on their vehicles, but they don't get into gasoline versus electric motors. From one point of view, obviously, a motor is a motor, but I'm thinking that because in Pennsylvania law an electric assisted bicycle is just a bicycle, not a motor vehicle, SEPTA should take them. Anybody ever tried it, and what if any reaction did you get from the staff?

--Paul

cerewa
08-31-09, 02:59 PM
I've never tried it, but I really doubt very many of SEPTA's staff people know enough about electric bikes to identify one when it's in front of them.

On the other hand... occasionally SEPTA staff people like to be cranky and use their rule-enforcing capability as a way to vent their agression. The rule looks fairly clear - "no motorized bicycles" seems to apply to any kind of bicycle with any kind of motor - even if it makes no sense to apply it to e-bikes.

Maybe you could remove the motor (remove the motorized wheel) and say, "no I'm not bringing a motorized bike, I'm bringing a motor in one hand and a motorless bike in the other!"